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A bill passed by the Michigan State Senate would endanger the health of Michiganders by granting sweeping new powers to practitioners of unscientific bogus medicine and treatments, said the Center for Inquiry.

Public discussion of scientific topics such as global warming is confused by misuse of the term “skeptic.”

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Special Articles —
The Well-Known Skeptic

If you are reading this, it may be because you are wondering about the name of my column. “How is this guy Rob Palmer—who I never heard of—writing an online column named ‘The Well-Known Skeptic’?

Well, for a long time I have been known by friends, family, and co-workers as the guy who “doesn’t believe in anything.” That’s because I am always the one to challenge woo claims in any discussion—even conversations I wasn’t originally part of (and I wonder why I don’t get invited to parties!) But even frequent personal interactions are not nearly enough to justify that description.

Could it be because, as a member of the Guerrilla Skeptics team, my skeptical outreach efforts put skeptical content in the hands of millions of Wikipedia readers as I detailed in my first SI article? That can’t be it. I am anonymous on Wikipedia, as are most contributors.

So, then what is the explanation? I actually have to thank Jay Novella; he inexplicably assigned me that honorific on The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe in early 2018. (Listen to the clip here.) I was beyond surprised to hear this phrase applied to myself, as it was certainly premature. But now, out of the blue, I was afforded this column to periodically share my musings on a range of topics (hopefully) of interest to readers of the most popular source of skeptical analysis!

Uncharacteristically, I believe this turn of events may reveal Jay’s description of me to have been the first proven, honest-to-goodness, paranormal, psychic, clairvoyant premonition. Somebody needs to contact the IIG to have Jay tested! On the other hand, maybe there is a simpler explanation: using Occam’s Razor, I have deduced that that SGU crew has more likely simply invented a time machine.

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February 18, 2019

In the final part of this interview, Jay discusses the growth of the SGU podcast, gender considerations at the NECSS conference, his parenting philosophy regarding science, and his close relative who is … wait for it … a flat earther.

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January 25, 2019

In part 2 of this interview, we discuss the History Channel’s Amelia Earhart debacle, mommy-woo, the Blue Whale Game, the influence of science fiction on skeptics, and chiropractic pseudoscience even a ten-year-old skeptic could see right through.

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November 12, 2018

In part 2 of this interview, we discuss the legacy of Perry DeAngelis, some Skeptics’ Guide segments including Jay’s all time favorite “Who’s That Noisy?”, and the Novella brothers’ science fiction review show Alpha Quadrant 6.

August 15, 2018

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July 20, 2018

On June 10, yours truly—someone who had never done a presentation anywhere as a skeptic with a capital “S”—was the very first speaker at the very first New York City Skeptics’ SpeedyCamp. So, of course I have absolutely no choice but to report on this event right here and now in my new column.

Content copyright CSI or the respective copyright holders. Do not redistribute without obtaining permission. Articles, reports, reviews, and letters published on the CSICOP.org website represent the views and work of individual authors. Their publication does not necessarily constitute and endorsement by CSI or its members unless so stated. Thanks to the ESO for the image of the Helix Nebula, also NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team for the image of NGC 3808B (ARP 87).